1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to peripheral devices, an information processing apparatus in which a control program for controlling the peripheral devices has been installed, and a method and a control program for controlling those devices and apparatus.
2. Related Background Art
A program group called an installation set is necessary for installing a device driver (hereinafter, referred to as a driver) as a control program for controlling peripheral devices. The driver as an installation target, an installer as a control program for installing the driver, and the like are included in the installation set. The drivers ordinarily differ in dependence on a type or a version. As an installation set, there are two types of formats: a format in which a plurality of corresponding model types are incorporated in one installation set; and a format in which the installation set is formed every corresponding model type. Specifically speaking, in the case of the former format, when installation start is instructed to an installing program called an installer, a plurality of model types are listed as installation targets and one of them can be selected. In the case of the latter format, only one model type is selected as an installation target upon installation and the driver can be installed in response to an instruction of the user. However, if the drivers of a plurality of corresponding model types are incorporated into one installation set in the former format, the following inconvenience is caused. For example, if a driver named BBB which corresponds to a version 2.00 is installed into a personal computer in which a driver named AAA whose version is 1.00 has been installed, a problem such that the version of the driver corresponding to AAA is also automatically upgraded to v2.00 occurs. The problem as mentioned above occurs particularly in the case where AAA and BBB include the same driver module group.
Although the above method is very advantageous to the user who always wants to upgrade the version of a printer driver installed in the computer to the latest, it means the version of the printer driver is arbitrarily upgraded without the user's recognition or consent.
However, the foregoing method is disadvantageous to the recent users who spend a long time to test the operation of the printer drivers to confirm it upon installation of a system and use only the drivers whose operation has been confirmed in a user environment. For example, in a large office which uses a print application or the like which depends largely on the printer driver in combination with the printer driver, severely strict management of the versions of the drivers is required and there is a strong demand to upgrade the version of only the driver designated by the user. There is also a strong demand to selectively and properly upgrade the version of the driver as a target of the version-up. This is true of management of the device drivers of the peripheral devices other than a printer.
For example, if the module sets constructing the printer drivers are the same in the above case, there is a case where the module of AAA is overwritten accompanied with the new installation of the new printer driver BBB. There is also a disadvantage such that the system has to be re-activated after the installation due to the overwriting process.